Summer has arrived and Tippie first-year MBAs are in the beginning of their valuable internship experiences. Her experience in the medical industry helped MBA Kandis Meinders find an internship that will utilize her business skills in an area she is passionate about: health care.
My internship search was what some consider non-traditional. My pre-MBA experience was in the medical and healthcare industries, so I started my search by focusing on companies that would be a good fit for me in the medical device industry. With the help of my second-year coach, I learned that a beginning strategy was to develop a list of target companies. I created a shortlist of ten companies and stayed focused on connecting with that group.
After working with Career Services to build a strong resume and practice my interview skills, I attended two career fairs in the fall: NSHMBA and the Midwest Career Fair. NSHMBA was the first career fair that I have ever been to, and it served as an excellent learning experience! Two members of the Tippie Career Services team also attended the fair to provide any advice or assistance we needed at the fair. One of them introduced me to some leads at the fair, and another one provided me assistance in reframing my elevator pitch, which led to great success!
When I attended the Midwest Career Fair, one of the Tippie Career Service team members had already provided a strong introduction for me to Zimmer, the company I was hoping to get a summer internship with. Upon approaching Zimmer’s booth at the fair, they essentially recited my resume to me and were selling themselves to me rather than the other way around, solely due to the assistance on the front end from our strong Career Services team.
A major lesson I learned from the career fairs is to plan in advance and submit applications to participating companies 2-4 weeks before the fair so that you can try to get interviews secured in advance without needing to spend extensive periods of time waiting in line at the fairs.
Through my introduction to Zimmer at the Midwest Career Fair, I was offered an internship with the company’s Leadership Program, and I will spend the summer in one of three areas: marketing/sales, quality/regulator, or operations/logistics. I am excited to merge my medical and business knowledge to truly make a difference at a company I respect!
I believe my success at landing an internship at Zimmer was due to my focus. Students starting the MBA job search should stay focused. Find out what you are passionate about and what you want to do with your career. Then, start a focused career search on precisely that!
